Today's celebration: August 3rd's special event
August 3rd is a day filled with significant events, celebrations, and historical milestones. Here are some of the notable happenings that mark this day.
Railway Workers' Day is celebrated annually on the first Sunday of August, with this year's celebration taking place on August 3rd. This holiday, initially tied to the birthday of Emperor Nicholas I, was revived in 1935, honoring the hard work and dedication of railway workers.
In the world of entertainment, Paul McCartney formed a new band called Wings on August 3rd, 1971. The Moscow International Film Festival also resumed for the first time since 1941 on August 3rd, 1959.
August 3rd is a special day for Brazil, as it is the day Capoeira Day is celebrated. Capoeira, Brazil's national martial dance, emerged among African slaves brought to Brazil by Portuguese colonizers.
The Venezuelan flag was first raised on August 3, 1806, at the port of Santa Ana de Coro, by Francisco Miranda, a leader of the South American independence movement. The red stripe on the flag represents Spain's bloody rule, and the blue stripe signifies the Atlantic Ocean separating them. The yellow stripe symbolizes the gold-rich and resource-abundant American continent.
In the realm of science and technology, Boris Kurchatov, a Soviet radio chemist and state prize laureate, was born on August 3rd, 1905. Russia's first high-speed railway line connecting Paveletsky Station and Domodedovo Airport opened on August 3rd, 2002.
August 3rd is also a day of tradition and superstition. In some cultures, if heavy dew falls on this day, it's a sign of a poor flax harvest. On August 3rd, it was customary for Russian peasants to take care of granaries, checking for rotten boards or rusted nails.
Notable birthdays on August 3 include jazz and pop singer Tony Bennett (1926–2023), lifestyle icon Martha Stewart (born 1941), and legendary American football quarterback Tom Brady (born 1977). The date also marks the deaths of influential figures such as novelist Joseph Conrad (1924), writer Flannery O'Connor (1964), comedian Lenny Bruce (1966), Soviet Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky (1968), Cypriot leader Makarios III (1977), actress Carolyn Jones (1983), film pioneer Ida Lupino (1995), photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson (2004), and Russian dissident author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (2008).
Historically, August 3 is significant as the start date of Christopher Columbus's first voyage in 1492, when he left Spain with the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María to explore the New World. The XXII Olympic Games in Moscow also came to a close on August 3rd, 1980.
Finally, August 3 is observed as Clean Your Floors Day, International Forgiveness Day, National Sisters Day, Esther Day, and Cloves Syndrome Awareness Day, a day aimed at raising awareness for this rare genetic disorder.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_3 [2] https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/columbus-leaves-spain [3] https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/national-watermelon-day [4] https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/national-sisters-day/
Note: The article does not include information about St. Onuphrius, Evangeline Lilly, James Alan Hetfield, and Darya Domracheva as they were not directly tied to the main theme of the day.
- The hard work of railway workers is honored annually on August 3rd during the Railway Workers' Day celebrations.
- On August 3rd, 1971, Paul McCartney formed a new band called Wings.
- August 3rd is also the day the Moscow International Film Festival resumed in 1959 after a long halt.
- Capoeira Day, a celebration of Brazil's national martial dance, occurs on August 3rd each year.
- August 3, 1806, saw the first raising of the Venezuelan flag at Santa Ana de Coro.
- Boris Kurchatov, a significant figure in Soviet radio chemistry, was born on August 3rd, 1905.
- Heavy dew on August 3rd in some cultures is believed to predict a poor flax harvest.
- Notable figures such as Tony Bennett, Martha Stewart, Tom Brady, and numerous others have birthdays on August 3rd.
- Joseph Conrad, Flannery O'Connor, Lenny Bruce, Makarios III, Carolyn Jones, Ida Lupino, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn all passed away on August 3rd.
- Christopher Columbus began his first voyage to explore the New World on August 3rd, 1492.
- The XXII Olympic Games in Moscow concluded on August 3rd, 1980.
- August 3 is observed as Clean Your Floors Day, International Forgiveness Day, National Sisters Day, Esther Day, and Cloves Syndrome Awareness Day.
